Violence. Drinking game ‘Picolo’ accused of inciting sexual assault

The app picoloone of the most downloaded drinking games in France, has been pinned several times by users shocked by the challenges offered by the game, which legitimize sexual assault.

Already in 2020, a user on Twitter posted a screenshot of the application, inviting players to answer the question: « For or against the fantasy of rape (both partners are aware that it is only staged) ? « . More recently, BFMTV mentions the challenges: « Rub your head against someone’s private parts », « Take turns touching the penis of your neighbor or neighbor on the right », or even « Send a photo of your cock or of your schneck with three contacts”. Players must drink if they fail to complete the game challenge.

“It’s taken from rape culture”

Certainly, the participants are among friends, but some may find themselves unable to say no when the game goes too far. « The fact of using drinking games to bring about physical rapprochement is taken from the culture of rape », affirms Safiatou Mendy, coordinator and trainer for the association Consentis, which fights against sexist and sexual violence in festive settings, such as student parties.

She explains that gambling can « alter consent, put the person in a situation where they can’t say no »: « If I encourage a person to do something in front of everyone, do they have the freedom to say no? This is both due to the pressure of the group, and to the fact that we consider that a party is a space of letting go, where we imagine that everyone is there to flirt, decrypts she.

Monitor yourself and others

When the Consentis association carries out awareness-raising actions with students, it explains to them that “alcohol does not produce violence, it is even a drug which is one of the depressants, which tends to put you to sleep. But it is the imagination that we carry on it that incites us to be violent”. Clearly, it is because it is generally accepted that alcohol makes people impulsive that people who have been drinking indulge in violence.

Safiatou Mendy therefore recommends watching yourself when drinking. “If we organize the evening, we empower everyone, we choose who we invite, we remain attentive, we may consume less,” she advises. Finally, consent should come before initiating a drinking game, not just before sex, a time when asking the question “is not necessarily natural”.

According to the association, 60% of women have already been victims of harassment or sexual assault, and 10% of men. And evenings with friends are not always a place where you can feel safe, since in 80% of cases, the assault is committed by someone close to the victim.